Time is running out

SAM Sam slung her backpack over her shoulder and walked out of the class. Maybe it was the extra chill that came with winter or the growing heat in her belly, signaling the coming of her mate, but she was irritable and in no mood for another two hours of class. She couldn't sit still, and the stone building with its warm temperature just discomforted her. She was not worried that anyone would stop her exit. After all, she was the Alpha's son. "Let's go to the woods for a run," her wolf whispered. She didn't want to go home anyway, so she obliged. There was no need to hide; this was wolf territory, she could transform freely. She doubled over with the familiar tingling in her spine. Her eyes flashed a charming shade of violet. A second later, a large black wolf stood in her place. Its eyes the purest shade of violet. Its jet-black coat rustled in the gentle breeze. It raised its massive black head and let out a deep howl before it took off into the forest. "To Hound Rock?" Sam didn't care where it took her; she just wanted to be far from the pack. The forest was white. Her wolf's paws left deep prints in the snow. One would consider the scenery beautiful, but Sam was in no mood to appreciate winter's frozen beauty. In a few days, she would be turning 18 human years, after which she would start aging according to wolf years. This was a huge problem for one major reason. It was a given that on her birthday, she would find her mate, just like every other werewolf. The only problem was that she and her wolf, Scar, were unique. She isn't her wolf. Your wolf is a part of you. But her wolf was a separate entity on its own. And her wolf was a he. Like I said, unique. No one knew of this oddity, and she planned to keep it that way. But if something goes wrong during her mate binding ceremony, for example, her mate turning out to be a man, then the secret she has hidden from even her own father for the past 18 years will be found out. For the past 18 years, she has been living as the Alpha's son. She didn't want to imagine what would happen if her real gender became known. There are two types of werewolves. A human-based werewolf is born as a human then turns into a wolf on its tenth human year. While the more powerful wolf-based werewolf is born a wolf then turns into a human on its tenth human year. Sam is the second type. Of course, this difference was only in the royal blood. Those not of the royal pack blood were just normal shifters whose wolf form was merely a second skin. But in her pack, a man and his wolf were two entities united as one, making them a powerful force. This was the reason they were the strongest pack in the world and the only recognized royals. There was much festivity at her birth. Several surrounding packs came to celebrate the birth of the powerful Wolf-base pup. It was even better that the pup was a male. Her father rewarded the Luna with great gifts. Those were happy days. The pup grew in seclusion, trained in the ways of the wolf and a leader. On her tenth human year, the Luna went with her to a mountain where she believed would grant Sam an easy transformation. After the ritual was completed and Sam's human form was manifested, her mother was both shocked and devastated. So she did the only thing she could think of. She told Sam, 'you're a boy.' This was the start of the misunderstanding that became Sam's life. Scar stopped at the edge of Hound Rock. Then he lay down and shut his eyes. In that moment of tranquility, Sam took over and turned human again. Without the fur to keep her warm, she shivered in the cold. Her lips turned pale, and she looked nearly bloodless. But she didn't let it bother her. She kept staring into the distance. Her short hair brushed over one eye. Standing there, she looked the picture of a dashing prince. But only she and her mother, the Luna, knew this prince charming was just a crossdressing beauty. When she felt that her blood was near frozen, she prepared to give Scar control once again when she heard the oddest thing. It was a jingle, barely audible over the howling wind, but she could still hear it. She raised her head and squinted into the distance. A flying speck of something was getting closer and bigger. Not a plane. Not a bird. Horses? She cleared her troubled mind and focused her vision. Reindeers? Her mouth hung open in slight surprise. It was a tacky red sleigh pulled by two floating, or rather flying, reindeers. A man in red sat on it. The sleigh was headed towards her. Thinking the flying oddity was just passing, she continued to study it. The reindeers looked easily twice her size. For some reason, she thought she saw panic on their beastly faces. Then it hit her, and her eyes widened in shock. The sleigh was no longer flying; instead, it was descending at an alarming speed. And it was headed towards her! She turned in a spin and jumped off Hound Rock, shifting into Scar halfway through. She landed on the snow with a thump just as she heard a crash above her.